This invention relates to abrasive sheets for use in power sanding machines having vacuum dust extraction. Sanding machines, by their very nature, generate considerable quantities of dust, and many presently available models provide vacuum extraction facilities which minimize the spread of dust. Orbital sanding machines achieve this by sucking the dust through the sanding machine as it is being generated. For this purpose the sole plate of the sanding machine is provided with numerous holes through which the dust can be extracted. The present invention relates particularly to machines which employ this method of dust extraction. Needless to say, the sheets of abrasive used by machines of this type need to have holes which correspond with the holes in the sole plate. Since machines made by different manufacturers tend to have different patterns of holes in their respective sole plates, each sanding machine requires its own specially-adapted abrasive sheets having the appropriate matching holes.
It has been suggested to provide sheets which have holes pre-punched in them to match all configurations of holes presented by the various manufacturers' sole plates. However, this is not a solution because the holes in the abrasive sheet which do not coincide with holes in the sole plate of any given machine will expose portions of the base of that machine's sole plate. Since the base of the sole plate is normally a soft rubber-like material (for example neoprene rubber) to cushion the abrasive sheet against the surface being sanded, it is not protected against the heat which may be generated if it were to be allowed to make direct contact with the worksurface.
Thus it is an object of the present invention to provide abrasive sheets which can be employed on a variety of different machines while allowing the dust extraction facility to be employed but without suffering from the aforementioned problem.